"While we wait for the first results, it wouldn't hurt to unwind... Yeah, right."
Jumping off the ship's ramp, I spread my arms wide, breathing deeply and enjoying the pleasant atmosphere of the new planet. My gaze slides over the jungles frozen in the distance, extremely similar to the cursed forests of Haruun Kal. Fortunately, they were very different; these were the most ordinary forests, without hordes of poisonous vermin and other joys that had claimed many lives of the Helldivers.
The scents of smoke and burnt meat broke through the natural gifts. Instead of the smell of freshly cut grass, I caught a mixture of shit and blood...
"Oh, for fuck's sake." Spitting on the scorched earth, I turn away from the beautiful view in the distance, surveying the immediate surroundings. "Eh, they ruined such beauty."
"Do you even know who you're messing with... cough-cough..."
The pirate couldn't finish. With a buttstroke, Arkam knocked out half his teeth, causing the Corellian to fall on his back, clutching his bloody mouth with his hands. Whimpering and shivering from pain and fear, the bastard was a pathetic sight.
Kneeling before him, I pull out a bayonet-knife, starting to unwind a small fishing line from the handle. My mood was hopelessly ruined, which meant it was time to get down to business.
"We know, we know. And that's why it's better for you to answer the questions; then you'll die quickly." Gently tapping him on the forehead with the flat side of the blade, I gesture to the scene surrounding us. "Otherwise, this will be repeated on many planets..."
A hundred meters away from us, the engine of a downed and burning fighter exploded. Several bandits, trying to hide in the airtight cockpit, tumbled out of the hatch and rolled on the ground in attempts to beat out the flames consuming them... Not for long. A pair of Helldivers walked up to them with a leisurely gait, and two bursts from blasters ended the lives of the miserable scoundrels.
"Commander, we checked the base, no mentions." Striking his chest with a fist, one of the soldiers froze like a salt statue, continuing to stare at the clouds. Though, he was in a helmet, so he could very well be looking at me.
"Understood. Then we're packing up." Standing up to my full height, I just waved a hand at the pirate, and Sula headed toward him again, clearly intending to finish off the scum. Seeing such disregard for his important person, the former commander of this small spaceport began to shake with new force and broke into wails and promises. "Eh, to hell with you... Speak already."
"But you didn't ask any questions?" Lisping terribly and choking on tears, the pirate was about to protest but received another blow from the butt of a rifle. "Ow, please stop! You didn't ask anything... Ow!"
"You stupid piece of shit, you annoy me so much. And you were so arrogant when we first entered orbit."
"Sorry, sorry..."
Glancing at my watch, I realize we've been messing around here for too long, so I just ordered them to take the fool with us, but before that, I asked him the most important thing, though I already knew the answer.
"Which Vigo do you work for?"
"Garyn... Alexi Garyn... But he's not a Vigo anymore."
***
"Nothing again?" Contacting me as soon as I stepped on board, Somnia was showing off her home clothes and well-rested face, which caused me intense envy. "Don't look at me like that; you could have stayed on Rishi too and delegated the work to subordinates. You're the fool."
"Yeah, I know, I know. Who would have thought these rats were so slippery." Bypassing a couple of soldiers dragging the pirate base commander by his legs, I demonstratively grimace, for they were dragging him by his broken legs. "We've already destroyed three of their hideouts and a couple of fleets, and they still won't quit."
"The boy wants to prove himself and build a reputation." Exhaling tiredly, the girl took a sip from a cup of freshly brewed caf, then sprawled in the chair, throwing her legs onto the table. "Alexi only recently took the helm of Black Sun, and he needs to show that he's a 'serious' person and knows how to solve problems."
"He chose the wrong target." Clicking my tongue, I pass by a squad of Helldivers. A team of four guys was briskly dragging some technical gadgets onto the ship under the direction of some Ukian logistics officer. One of Fesat's subordinates was showering the clumsy soldiers with curses, handing out slaps to battle-hardened men in heavy armor without any fear. "And it's just stupid... It looks more like he's using our hands to get rid of competitors and disloyal forces."
"Could be. But it changes little for us. After Damask Holdings scaled back all their operations and went into the shadows, Black Sun, like many others, crawled out into the light." Opening her tablet, Somnia gave a contagious yawn, then shivered from the cold. "I don't know what happened with the Muuns, but as soon as the main toad disappeared, all the carrion acted like they were off the leash."
"Should I start worrying?"
Admiring such a pleasant picture, I even lost my train of thought for a moment when my loyal deputy commander wrapped herself in a blanket gifted by Shorty and now looked like a ruffled sparrow.
"No more than before." Clutching the mug with both hands, Somnia reverently inhaled the aroma of coffee, trying not to turn into a puddle. "We currently have enough strength and influence to fight Black Sun, especially in our territories. And thanks to your operations in their rear, things are going even easier."
"Wonderful." A long empty corridor was the last obstacle in my path. Only a few meters left when my intuition sounded the alarm. "Listen, I want to wash up now; let's talk in a couple of minutes."
"Huh? Um, okay."
Suspecting no foul play, the girl cut the connection, while I pulled my blaster from its holster and immediately switched it to the most powerful mode. A narrow space, there would be few opportunities to fire... especially if the enemy... attacks from above!
Twisting around, I drop to one knee and with the very first shot into the ceiling—kill the first attacker. Catching a laser bolt in the forehead, a hulking Nikto fell down, while his buddy threw off the remains of a cloaking cloak and with one swift movement sliced the edges of my blaster, then tried to impale me with a huge pike.
"God, how ambiguous that sounds."
Dashing away from the precise and calculated strikes of the assassin, I retreated toward my den, which was at the end of the corridor. The only door leading directly into my bedroom-office opened remotely, and another Liquidator ran out from there, in the exact same equipment.
Only now did the narrowness of the corridor begin to play into my hands. Dodging the spear thrust of the first one, I ducked under his arms, then grabbed him by the armpits. Using the momentum of the opponent falling forward, I guided him away from myself, giving him a slight shove into the wall and further ahead, toward the feet of the second attacker.
The assassin waiting in my room didn't miss a beat. Leaping over his swearing kinsman, the Nikto tried to impale my skull on his spear mid-jump...
But this young lad was far worse than his predecessor, so a second later he flew at me, still clutching his weapon. Pulling the boy toward me, I knocked the wind out of him with a couple of blows, then gripped his head with my hands and snapped the assassin's neck with one sharp movement.
A faint sense of annoyance and irritation radiated from the second assassin, as if I hadn't killed his kinsman and colleague, but had swatted a fly that the man had steadily fed and considered his own.
"What interesting fellows... Dammit."
The spear flew past me at high speed. Brushing my cheek with a gust of air, it embedded itself somewhere behind my back, but I had no time to turn around.
Growling, the Nikto... I don't even know how to properly decline the name of his race. Anyway, the man rushed at me in hand-to-hand combat, hoping to tackle me and clearly do the same thing to me that I had done to his buddy.
Only I didn't intend to wait for such a development. A knife flew into my hand. The sheath went airborne, forcing the killer to stall and slow down for a second.
The first sweeping blow struck sparks off his heavy armor. The second caught his cheek, nearly slicing his eye. The next was delivered with a reverse grip into the joint of the armor, reaching the armpit; the last I delivered from behind his back. Smoothly bypassing the crying-out Liquidator, I slit his throat with a light and elegant movement, forcing him to clutch at it with all his might.
The Nikto's fingers were stained with blood; a scarlet tie painted itself on his chest, flowing downward. Crashing to his knees, the assassin cast a final glance at me, and for a moment, I recognized respect in his eyes.
"Damn fanatics..."
The latest assassination attempt went much more painlessly, with a minimum of destruction and casualties. And when we did a head count, it became clear—there were no unplanned deaths, which meant we could breathe easy.
I decided not to tell Somnia anything. If she wanted to, she'd find out herself. The soldiers are so afraid of her and walk such a fine line that even the most unhinged and crazy maniacs we gladly recruit into our ranks... if they are loyal to True Freedom and Democracy!
Well, even these boogeymen for normal people tried their best not to mess with the "fragile" girl and the three battle brothers running behind her like shadows, even after all these years.
"Sigh, and I'm turning thirty this year... How time flies."
Emerging from the shower, which I was only able to visit after a couple of hours of debriefings and "anal punishments" for the entire ship's watch and the senior officer, I flopped into a chair.
There were too many thoughts in my head, a whole wagon and a hell of a trailer's worth, but I really didn't want to deal with all that...
"Alright, pull yourself together." Slapping my cheeks, I forced myself to stand up, then walked over to the desk where a single tablet rested, as I didn't need more than that. "Time to get to work."
A list of quick and simple queries through our databases, the open archive of the Baobab Merchant Fleet, and the Judicial Forces led to my attackers revealing themselves from a new side.
Morgukai. Quite expensive boys who often join the heads of major syndicates, pirate barons, or other bastards who can satisfy their thirst for destruction and murder.
Fairly famous, albeit secretive individuals. Not much was known about them; consider that most were wiped out long before our time, and now their semi-philosophical cult-order-gang had fallen into decay.
Every single one of them was a warrior, and experienced ones at that. Excellent assassins, bodyguards, and...
Jedi killers. And excellent killers at that, considering their armor and weapons consisted of metal capable of dampening lightsabers and taking small-caliber rounds without issue.
"Living large, the bastards... I wish I could equip all my boys like that," I clicked my tongue enviously, scrolling further through the found files. There was no specific information about the structure of their organization. All Morgukai were closed-off, tight-lipped, and extremely tolerant of pain and torture, so nothing was known about the gang's structure. On the other hand, there was a long list of their heroics that had made them famous, especially in criminal circles... and on the final pages covering their activity in this decade, I once again ran into a name that irritated me. Alexi Garyn. "You've got to be kidding me. You managed to crawl in here too. Decided to be a plug for every hole?"
My face contorted with displeasure, and my fist clenched involuntarily. This guy annoyed me immensely, especially with his arrogance, charisma, skills, and successes.
But what frustrated me most was that the newly minted leader of the Black Sun himself was hiding somewhere, rightfully fearing the fall of several thousand pods onto his head. Everyone who knew even a little about Alexi was mysteriously hidden in the darkness of the infinite galaxy, while his numerous opponents, on the contrary, crawled out in our path, throwing us off the scent and constantly getting in the way.
After clearing the last base, we were already planning to drop the search for him, and apparently, Garyn, having his spies in our ranks, goaded me this way, provoking me to continue the hunt?
"Little punk. Well, no matter. We'll still talk face to face."
***
"Mr. Garyn," bowing, the chief and most trusted assistant to the head of the syndicate hastily crossed the distance separating them, "as you predicted, the Helldivers destroyed Skimch's base; they didn't leave a stone unturned..."
"Good. That was obvious." Waving away the unnecessary words, the young blond man sprawled in his chair with a bold smile, feeling the gaze of his second confidante on the back of his head. Unable to hide his smile, Alexi turned to his bodyguard, whom he allowed much more than everyone else combined. "Everything is going much more successfully than I anticipated. At this rate, we'll be able to completely seize power much faster..."
"You are sacrificing too much. Don't you feel sorry for losing so many people, ships, enterprises..."
With a flick of his wrist, the man picked up a glass of Kuat bourbon from the table and took a large gulp. A smile of enjoyment crept onto his face. Standing at full height in front of the viewport, Garyn looked with superiority at the scuttling syndicate fighters who were actively building and checking something at his secret base.
"These are just minor pawns; by giving them up, I will win the whole game."
"You're poking a rancor with a stick, Alexi. See to it that the game doesn't drag on." Standing next to her employer and friend, the Dathomirian witch Mighella took the glass offered to her, eyeing the amber liquid with doubt. "I have a bad feeling..."
"Don't worry about that. I've already hired excellent guys who will cut off the snake's head, and then the mercenaries will be busy dividing the power among themselves. They certainly won't have time for us. Although... we could pick at the fish in murky water. Reclaim a couple of enterprises or even expand." New plans and schemes were already blooming in Garyn's head, while his bodyguard set the glass aside and was now looking into the distance with a squinted gaze, at the thick and gray clouds gathering far away. "...We could even take a swing at Tatooine and... Mighella?"
"Clouds are gathering over us. Something bad is happening, I feel it."
Accustomed to trusting his friend's words, Alexi cast aside all lack of seriousness and examined the face of the witch from the distant planet with a much more attentive gaze. The Force user was smart, capable, and experienced, so it wasn't worth dismissing her concerns.
Garyn himself was gifted, but unlike his bodyguard, he didn't know how to use his gift so subtly and in such matters relied more on her and cold calculations rather than the mysterious Force that flows in his blood.
"Are you sure? All the analysts' calculations, data from spies, and other information received—assure that success is guaranteed. And besides. This is just a gang of mercenaries grown fat on senators' handouts. They are no match in strength for the Black Sun."
"I am... overcome with doubt."
"Sigh, shit. Fine," calling over his loyal secretary Ult, Alexi snatched the PDA from his hands and began actively typing messages. A few minutes of tense silence, and a new stream of curses erupted from the syndicate head's mouth, drawing the attention of everyone gathered, "Too late. The assassins have already tried to carry out the contract."
"Unsuccessfully, I take it?"
Handing the PDA to the Dathomirian, Garyn returned to his chair, already weighing the scenarios in his head. He had studied Sam Altman's character enough before he started acting and understood that now the head of the Helldivers would take the bit between his teeth and come looking for him.
"Who would have thought the Morgukai would screw up!?" A true cry from the soul escaped Alexi's mouth as a quiet hiss. Ruffling his hair, the young criminal authority of the galaxy jumped to his feet, starting to pace in circles. "Professionals, damn them... They asked for so much money in advance, and for zero result. I should have sent you, you certainly..."
"Would be lying next to them right now," thoughtfully examining the photograph of the dead bodies of the Niktos, Mighella easily imagined herself lying next to them, and the Force whispered to her approvingly, confirming the witch's fears, "The fears are becoming clearer, Alexi."
Looking at her boss and friend with a hint, Mighella seemed to be saying: "You brewed this mess yourself, deal with it yourself. I'll be of little use here."
"Alright, alright! Damn... Bitch... And everything was going so well. Who could have known these Morgukai were so useless." Waving off the bodyguard who had started to speak, Garyn decided to leave out the fact that he had been warned about the mercenaries' competence, as the level of Morgukai fighters was falling lower every year. "Fine. Get me in touch with this Altman. I'll talk to him myself."
***
***
Read early on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Granulan